World leaders, including Pope Francis, are condemning an Easter Sunday attack on Christians by a Taliban suicide bomber in Pakistan that left more than 70 dead.
According to the Daily Mail, the attack occurred near a children’s playground in a park in Lahore where many Christians had gathered to celebrate Easter. Hundreds of revelers were present when a suicide bomber linked with Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban, blew himself up.
The blast killed 72 people, including 29 children, and injured 300 others when explosives packed with ball bearings ripped through the crowd. Because of his close proximity to the playground, his victims were mostly women and children.
With many of the injured said to be in critical condition, the death toll is expected to rise.
“We claim responsibility for the attack on Christians as they were celebrating Easter,” the group said in a statement. “We want to send this message to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that we have entered Lahore. He can do what he wants but he won’t be able to stop us. Our suicide bombers will continue these attacks.”
Shahbaz Sharif, the chief minister of Punjab province, has announced three days mourning and pledged to ensure that those involved in the attack are brought to trial.
Nasreen Bibi, the mother of a two-year-old injured in the attack, was crying when she told reporters that her family was “just here to have a nice evening and enjoy the weather. May God shower his wrath upon these attackers. What kind of people target little children in a park?”
Javed Ali, a 35-year-old resident who lives opposite park, wasn’t part of the festivities because it was too crowded. He said the force of the blast shattered the windows of his home.
]“Everything was shaking, there were cries and dust everywhere. After ten minutes I went outside. There was human flesh on the walls of our house. People were crying, I could hear ambulances.”
Pope Francis was horrified by the attack, calling it “reprehensible” and saying that it “bloodied” Easter.
“I wish to express my closeness to all those affected by this cowardly and senseless crime, and ask you to pray to the Lord for the numerous victims and their loved ones,” Pope Francis said during his Regina Coeli address.
“I repeat, once again, that violence and murderous hatred lead only to pain and destruction; respect and fraternity are the only way to achieve peace. The Passover of the Lord inspires in us, in an even more powerful way, prayers to God so that he stops the hands of the violent, who spread terror and death; and makes it possible for love, justice and reconciliation to reign in the world.”
After his remarks, Pope Francis led those gathered in St. Peter’s Square in a “Hail Mary” for the victims and their families.
Ned Price, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, said: “The United States condemns in the strongest terms today’s appalling terrorist attack in Lahore, Pakistan. This cowardly act in what has long been a scenic and placid park has killed dozens of innocent civilians and left scores injured.”
He added, “We will continue to work with our partners in Pakistan and across the region … to root out the scourge of terrorism.”
Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron, who used his Easter message to urge Britons of all faiths to stand up for Christian values, said he was shocked by the attack and promised “we will do what we can to help.”
The UK’s Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond wrote on Twitter that the UK “utterly condemns senseless & shocking violence against innocent families.”
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